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Industry forum donation to save lives of children with diabetes

Members of the Diabetes Industry Forum, formally known as the International Exhibitor Committee (IEC), have donated 42,260 EUR to IDF’s ‘Life for a Child’ programme.

Funds from the donation will go toward supporting some of the programme’s 12,000 children with diabetes in developing countries, where the combination of poverty, lack of quality health services and limited diabetes education deprive children and youth with diabetes of their chance of survival.

Shortages of insulin supplies mean children are unable to control their blood glucose levels, without adequate clinical care or management support and have little practical knowledge about the disease.

Many children who cannot access essential medicines and care in time will die from diabetes complications.

Many children who cannot access essential medicines and care in time will die from diabetes complications. As they move into adulthood others will suffer devastating complications such as eye damage and kidney failure. By strengthening local paediatric and young adult diabetes services, the programme provides crucial support to these children and youth.

Speaking about the funds, Dr Graham Ogle, General Manager of the programme said “Thanks to donations such as this, the programme has been going from strength to strength. It now reaches over 12,000 children in 43 developing countries around the world”.

The number of countries covered by the programme continues to grow: in the last six months alone the programme signed Memorandums with eight new centres in countries as diverse as Cambodia, India, Pakistan, the Philippines, Rep. Congo and St. Lucia.